Thomas Hooker
File:Hooker.jpg Hooker's Company reach the Connecticut, publishers: Estes & Lauriat, 1879
Born	(1586-07-05)July 5, 1586 Marefield or Birstall, Leicestershire
Died	July 7, 1647(1647-07-07) (aged 61) Hartford, Connecticut Colony
Nationality	England
Occupation	Congregationalist minister
Known for	Helped found the Connecticut Colony and write one of the first written constitutions
Religion	Congregationalist
Spouse	Susanna (possibly née Garbrand) Hooker (2nd wife) The name of his first wife is not known[1]
Children	6[1]
Signature

Thomas Hooker (July 5, 1586 – July 7, 1647) was a prominent Puritan colonial leader, who founded the Colony of Connecticut after dissenting with Puritan leaders in Massachusetts. He was known as an outstanding speaker and a leader of universal Christian suffrage.

Called today “the Father of Connecticut,” Thomas Hooker was a towering figure in the early development of colonial New England. He was one of the great preachers of his time, an erudite writer on Christian subjects, the first minister of Cambridge, Massachusetts, one of the first settlers and founders of both the city of Hartford and the state of Connecticut, and cited by many as the inspiration for the "Fundamental Orders of Connecticut," cited by some as the world's first written democratic constitution that established a representative government.^[2]

Most likely coming out of the county of Leicestershire, in the East Midlands region, the Hooker family was prominent at least as far back as the reign of Henry VIII. There is known to have been a great Hooker family in Devon (colloquially called Devonshire, in the middle of the southwestern peninsula), well-known throughout Southern England. The Devon branch produced the great theologian and clergyman, the Rev. Richard Hooker who, with Sir Walter Raleigh, was one of the two most influential sons of Exeter, the county town of Devon. Family genealogist Edward Hooker linked the Rev. Thomas to the Rev. Richard and the Devon branch. Other Hooker genealogists, however, have traced the Rev. Thomas back to Leicestershire where, in fact, he is said to have been born. Positive evidence linking Thomas to Leicestershire is lacking since the Marefield parish records from before 1610 perished. Any link to the Rev. Richard is likewise lacking since the Rev. Thomas’s personal papers were disposed of and his house destroyed after his death. There remains no evidence giving positive information as to which region Hooker came from, so the issue remains unsettled.^[3]

Life[link]

Thomas Hooker was likely born at Marefield or Birstall, Leicestershire,^[4] and went to school at Market Bosworth.^[5] In March 1604, he entered Queen's College, Cambridge as a scholarship student. ^[6] He received his Bachelors of Arts from Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1608, continuing there to earn his Masters of Arts in 1611.^[5][7][8] He stayed at Emmanuel as a fellow for a few years.^[5] After his stay at Emmanuel, Hooker preached at the Esher parish, where he earned a reputation as an excellent speaker.^[5][8]

Around 1626, Hooker became a lecturer at the Chelmsford Cathedral.^[5] However, in 1629 Archbishop William Laud suppressed church lecturers, and Hooker was forced to retire to Little Baddow.^[5] His leadership of Puritan sympathizers brought him a summons to the Court of High Commission. Forfeiting his bond, Hooker fled to Rotterdam, Holland,^[8] and from there immigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony aboard the Griffin.^[1][5]

Hooker arrived in Boston and settled in Newtown (later renamed Cambridge), where he became the pastor of the First Parish Church. His parish became known as "Mr. Hooker's Company".^[5]

Hooker and Company Journeying through the Wilderness from Plymouth to Hartford, in 1636, Frederic Edwin Church, 1846

Voting in Massachusetts was limited to freemen, individuals who had been formally admitted to their church after a detailed interrogation of their religious views and experiences. Hooker disagreed with this limitation of suffrage, putting him at odds with the influential pastor John Cotton. Owing to his conflict with Cotton and discontented with the suppression of Puritan suffrage and at odds with the colony leadership,^[8] Hooker and the Rev. Samuel Stone led a group of about 100^[9] who, in 1636, founded the settlement of Hartford, named for Stone’s place of birth: Hertford, in England.^[10]

This led to the founding of the Connecticut Colony.^[5][11] Hooker became more active in politics in Connecticut. The General Court representing Wethersfield, Windsor and Hartford met at the end of May 1638 to frame a written constitution in order to establish a government for the commonwealth. Hooker preached the opening sermon at First Church of Hartford on May 31, declaring that "the foundation of authority is laid in the free consent of the people."^[12]

On January 14, 1639, freemen from these three settlements ratified the "Fundamental Orders of Connecticut" in what John Fiske called "the first written constitution known to history that created a government. It marked the beginnings of American democracy, of which Thomas Hooker deserves more than any other man to be called the father. The government of the United States today is in lineal descent more nearly related to that of Connecticut than to that of any of the other thirteen colonies."^[13]

In recognition of this, on the wall of the narrow alleyway just outside the grounds near the Chelmsford Cathedral in Chelmsford, Essex, England, where he was town lecturer and curate, there is a Hooker Memorial Civic Plaque fixed high on the wall of the narrow alleyway, opposite the south porch, that reads: "Thomas Hooker, 1586 - 1647, Curate at St. Mary’s Church and Chelmsford Town Lecturer 1626-29. Founder of the State of Connecticut, Father of American Democracy."^[14]

The Rev. Hooker died during an "epidemical sickness" in 1647, at the age of 61. The location of his grave is unknown, although he is believed to be buried in Hartford's Ancient Burying Ground. Because there was no known portrait of him, the statue of him that stands nearby, in front of Hartford’s Old State House, was sculpted from the likenesses of his descendants. However, the city is not without a sense of humor regarding its origins. Each year, organizations and citizens of Hartford dress up in outrageous costumes to celebrate Hooker Day with the Hooker Day Parade. T-shirts sold in the Old State House proclaim "Hartford was founded by a Hooker."^[15]

Views[link]

Plaque honoring Hooker's ministry at the First Church of Cambridge, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Thomas Hooker strongly advocated extended suffrage to include Puritan worshippers, a view which would lead him and his followers to colonize Connecticut.^[5] He also promoted the concept of a government that must answer to the people, stating: "[T]hey who have the power to appoint officers and magistrates, it is in their power, also, to set the bounds and limitations of the power and place unto which they call them" through "the privilege of election, which belongs to the people according to the blessed will and law of God".^[5] Thomas Hooker argued for greater religious tolerance towards all Christian denominations.^[16]

Hooker defended the calling of synods by magistrates, and attended a convention of ministers in Boston whose purpose was to defend Congregationalism.^[5] He later published A Survey of the Summed of Church-Discipline in defense of Congregationalism, and applied its principles to politics and government.^[8]

Thomas Hooker was a strong leader of the contrition doctrine. He believed that much of God's favor needed to be re-earned by men.^[17] To Hooker, sin was the most crafty of enemies, defeating grace on most occasions. He disagreed with many of the predecessor theologies of Free Grace theology, preferring a more muted view on the subject. He focused on preparation for heaven and following the moralist character.^[17]

Family[link]

House of Thomas Hooker, Hartford, Connecticut

Thomas Hooker came to the colonies with his second wife, Suzanne. Nothing is known of his first wife.

His son Samuel, likely born at Cambridge, Massachusetts, graduated from Harvard College in 1653. He became the well-known minister of Farmington, Connecticut, where his descendants lived for many generations.^{[notes 1]} Of Rev. Samuel Hooker, Cotton Mather wrote in Magnalia Christi Americana: "Thus we have to this day among us our dead Hooker, yet living in his worthy son Samuel Hooker, an able, faithful, useful minister at Farmington, in the Colony of Connecticut."

John Hooker, son of Rev. Samuel and grandson of Rev. Thomas, served as Speaker of the Connecticut Assembly, and previously as Judge of the state supreme court. James Hooker, brother of John and son of Rev. Samuel, also became a prominent political figure in Connecticut. He married the daughter of William Leete of Guilford, Connecticut, and subsequently settled there. James Hooker served as the first probate judge, and later as speaker of the Connecticut colonial assembly. Rev. Thomas's granddaughter Mary Hooker, the daughter of Rev. Samuel, married the Rev. James Pierpont. Their daughter Sarah Pierpont married the Rev. Jonathan Edwards.

Other direct descendants of Rev. Thomas Hooker include Henry Hooker, Mary Hooker Pierpont, William Howard Taft, Timothy Dwight V, Aaron Burr, William Gillette, William Huntington Russell, Edward H. Gillette, George Catlin, Emma Willard, J.P. Morgan, Rev. Joshua Leavitt, Roger Hooker Leavitt, Hart Leavitt, Thom Miller, and Adonijah Rockwell.^[1] On May 16, 1890, descendants of Thomas Hooker held their first reunion at Hartford, Connecticut.^[18]

Works[link]

• The Application of Redemption (1659). Ames, Iowa (USA): International Outreach. 2008. p. 450. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/7981892838155|7981892838155]]. http://www.heritagebooks.org/bookstore/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=8718. 
• A Brief Exposition of the Lord's Prayer (1645). Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing. p. 92. ISBN 1-4367-1922-4. http://www.kessinger.net/searchresults-orderthebook.php?ISBN=1436719224. 
• The Christian's Two Chief Lessons: Self-Denial and Self-Trial. Ames, Iowa (USA): International Outreach. 2002. p. 174. ISBN 0-9641803-7-5. http://www.heritagebooks.org/bookstore/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3729. 
• The Covenant of Grace Opened. Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing. p. 90. ISBN 0-7661-6811-5. http://www.kessinger.net/searchresults-orderthebook.php?ISBN=0766168115. 
• The Danger of Desertion Or A Farewell Sermon of Mr. Thomas Hooker. Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing. p. 36. ISBN 0-7661-7195-7. http://www.kessinger.net/searchresults-orderthebook.php?ISBN=0766171957. 
• An Expostion of the Principles of Religion (1645). 
• The Poor Doubting Christian Drawn to Christ (1629). Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing. p. 24. ISBN 0-7661-6898-0. http://www.kessinger.net/searchresults-orderthebook.php?ISBN=0766168980. 
• The Saint's Dignity and Duty (1651). Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing. p. 262. ISBN 0-7661-6946-4. http://www.kessinger.net/searchresults-orderthebook.php?ISBN=0766169464. 
• The Soul's Exaltation (1638). Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing. p. 314. ISBN 0-7661-6799-2. http://www.kessinger.net/searchresults-orderthebook.php?ISBN=0766167992. 
• The Soul's Humiliation. Ames, Iowa (USA): International Outreach. 2000. p. 167. ISBN 1-892838-05-2. http://www.heritagebooks.org/products/The-Soul%27s-Humiliation.html. 
• The Soul's Ingrafting into Christ (1637). 
• The Soul's Preparation for Christ: Or, A Treatise of Contrition, Wherein is discovered How God breaks the heart, and wounds the Soul, in the conversion of a Sinner to Himself The Soul's Preparation for Christ (1632). Ames, Iowa (USA): International Outreach. 1994. 
• A Survey Of The Summe Of Church-Discipline: Wherein The Way Of The Churches Of New England Is Warranted Out Of The Word (1648). Whitefish, MT (USA): Kessinger Publishing, LLC. p. 646. ISBN 0-7661-6925-1. 

Notes[link]

1. ^ Married to the eldest daughter of Capt. Thomas Willett of Plymouth Colony, a Plymouth merchant and later first mayor of New York City, Rev. Samuel Hooker was the progenitor of all Hookers who claim descent from Rev. Thomas Hooker of Connecticut. [1]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Who was Thomas Hooker? at Thomas Hooker School History

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (June 2011)

Thomas Barbey (born Thomas Beecher Hooker on November 18, 1957, in Greenwich, Connecticut) is a singer and photographer.^[1]

History[link]

Barbey, best known as Tom Hooker, was brought to Europe when he was six months old. At the age of ten, he started his musical career as a drummer. At 13, he created his first band. At 15, he first appeared in public at a concert as a drummer/singer.

He studied languages in Switzerland. In 1980, he moved to Italy, where he was discovered by Italian producers. His first hit was "Flip Over", b/w the track "We Can Start It All Over Again". He had his first major success in 1986 with "Looking for Love".

Den Harrow[link]

Hooker co-wrote and sang lead vocals on the first two Den Harrow albums, and co-wrote many subsequent Den Harrow songs under the name T. Beecher. When Hooker was credited for vocals at all, it was only for background vocals, as it was the producers' intention to have a lip-synching model to be the public face of Den Harrow.

Photography career[link]

In 1994, Hooker left the music scene to move to America to marry Suzanne Berquist. He eventually moved to Los Angeles and changed his name to Thomas Barbey, his mother's maiden name. He began a career as a visual artist, creating surreal photographs, called photomontage. He currently exhibits in galleries in many countries around the world.

In October 2010, Hooker collaborated with his longtime musical colleague and fellow composer, Miki Chieregato, to produce and release a brand new single and video, "Change Your Mind". This collaboration marks the return to the roots of the same production team that was responsible for all of the initial Den Harrow and Tom Hooker output between 1985 and 1988. In 2011, Hooker released a new recording and music video of the Den Harrow track "Future Brain", which features himself.

Discography[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (June 2011)

Albums[link]

• 1980: Tom Hooker
• 1986: Only One
• 1988: Reputation
• 1992: Fighting For Our Love
• 2011: Unconditional Love

Singles[link]

• 1980: "Flip Over"/"We Can Start It All Over Again"
• 1981: "Toccami"/"Go Today"
• 1981: "I Want To Love"
• 1982: "Dove Andiamo"/"Try Me"
• 1982: "With Your Body"
• 1983: "Come Back Home"
• 1984: "Give It To Me"
• 1984: "Indian Girl"/"Love Attack"
• 1984: "Real Men" (12")
• 1985: "Cry"/"Don't Forget (To Buy This Record)"
• 1986: "Help Me"
• 1986: "Looking For Love"
• 1986: "Swiss Boy" (under Lou Sern pseudonym)
• 1986: "Only One" (12")
• 1987: "Atlantis" (12")
• 1988: "Feeling Okay" (12")
• 1988: "No More Heaven" (12")
• 1990: "Living In The Sunshine" (7")
• 1991: "Sex-O-Phone & Funk Guitar" (12")
• 1994: "Runaway" (12")
• 2010: "Change Your Mind"

References[link]

External links[link]

• Tom Hooker interview
• Thomas Barbey official site

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (July 2008)

Den Harrow
Den Harrow (2009)
Background information
Birth name	Stefano Zandri
Born	(1962-06-04) June 4, 1962 (age 50) Nova Milanese , Italy
Origin	Italy
Genres	New-wave, Italo-Disco
Years active	1983–present
Labels	Baby Records, Polydor Records

Den Harrow stage name of Stefano Zandri (born on June 4, 1962 in Nova Milanese, Italy) a fashion model from Milan, Italy was chosen to be the frontman of Den Harrow.

Career[link]

Den Harrow was a popular project in the 1980s and reached the top ten in Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden with hits like "Future Brain", "Mad Desire", "Bad Boy", "Don't Break My Heart", "Day by Day", and "Catch the Fox", all from the first two albums Overpower and Day by Day. The name "Den Harrow" was invented by the producers of the project, which according to them is based on the Italian word "Denaro" (money).

Revealing the truth[link]

After years of fame and popularity, it was revealed by front-man Stefano Zandri and his producers that Zandri did not actually sing the Den Harrow songs; he was essentially a character who lip-synched to vocals recorded by a number of other singers. Furthermore, since they did not consider Zandri's name and origin to be "trendy" enough, the producers R. Turatti and M. Chieregato concealed Zandri's Italian origin, marketing him as having been born Manuel Stefano Carry in Boston, Massachusetts. This was done so Polydor Records could market him more easily in the English-speaking world, where Italian-produced music was, at the time, viewed with skepticism.^[1]

American vocalist Tom Hooker, a.k.a. Thomas Barbey, who was residing in Italy during the Italo-Disco era, sang most of the songs for the Den Harrow project, including the 1985–1986 European hit singles "Don't Break My Heart", "Bad Boy", "Catch the Fox", and "Future Brain". Another vocalist, Anthony James from England, was contracted to sing the lead vocals on the Lies album (1988), and also provided the lead vocals on songs like "Holiday Night", "My Time", "You have a way". During an interview, Tom Hooker explains why it was decided to be done this way:

Also according to Tom Hooker, Chuck Rolando's voice was used in the early singles "To Meet Me" and "A Taste of Love". Later on, Silver Pozzoli was chosen to do the single "Mad Desire"; however, Hooker provided the vocals for the album releases of "Mad Desire". Although Hooker continued co-writing tracks for Den Harrow project, the producers wanted to use a higher-voiced vocalist for the 1988 album Lies. Hooker says that Zandri did sing on the 1991 Den Harrow single "Ocean".^[2]

Den Harrow in the 1990s and 2000s[link]

In 1997 Stefano Zandri moved to California to take part in the TV series Sunset Beach. In 2005, he hosted the Italian-language TV show "Radio HARROW" on the satellite TV channel "Match Music". In 2006, he took part in a reality show: the Italian version of "Celebrity Survivor" broadcast on Rai Due. In 2007, via his web site, Zandri released a new song, "FEDEN - Lo so", written and sung by Zandri and his wife.

As of the late 2000s, Stefano Zandri continues to make live public appearances, especially in eastern Europe, under the name Den Harrow. Although he claims that he has learned to sing himself, he still lip-synchs to Tom Hooker's voice in these performances.

Dispute with Tom Hooker[link]

In 2010, Tom Hooker recorded and published on YouTube a press conference-style video in which Hooker, flanked by Den Harrow co-producer Miki Chierigato, states and demonstrates that he was the vocalist on most of the Den Harrow records, and in which he accuses Zandri of continuing to publicly lip synch to those recordings.^[3] He also states that Zandri made threats and insults against Hooker and his family on Facebook for exposing the vocal inauthenticity of the Den Harrow recordings. Hooker asserts that Zandri no longer has permission to publicly lip sync to Den Harrow recordings that use Tom Hooker's voice.^[3]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• 1985 - Overpower [#29 Sweden, #20 Switzerland]^[4]

• 1987 - Day By Day [#13 Germany,^[5] #25 Sweden, #4 Switzerland]^[6]

• 1988 - Lies

• 1989 - The Best Of Den Harrow

• 1996 - I, Den

• 1999 - Back From The Future

• 1999 - Mad Desire (I Successi)

Singles[link]

• 1983 - "To Meet Me"
• 1984 - "A Taste Of Love"
• 1984 - "Mad Desire" (#13 Italy⁽¹⁾)
• 1985 - "Future Brain" (#6 Switzerland, #17 France, #12 Italy⁽¹⁾)^[7]
• 1985 - "Bad Boy" (#11 Switzerland, #17 France, #5 Italy⁽²⁾, #20 Germany)^[8]
• 1986 - "Overpower"
• 1986 - "Charleston" (#17 Switzerland, #27 France, #18 Germany, #17 Italy⁽²⁾)^[9]
• 1986 - "Catch The Fox" (#16 Sweden, #8 Switzerland, #8 Italy⁽²⁾, #27 Germany)^[10]
• 1987 - "Don't Break My Heart" (#6 Switzerland, #10 Italy⁽³⁾, #4 Germany, #5 Sweden)
• 1987 - "Tell Me Why" (#12 Switzerland, #22 Germany, #15 Italy)
• 1987 - "Energy Rain"
• 1988 - "Day By Day" (#29 Italy, #10 Sweden)
• 1988 - "Born To Love" (#20 Italy⁽⁴⁾, #45 Germany, #12 Sweden)
• 1988 - "You Have A Way" (#17 Italy⁽⁴⁾, #56 Germany)
• 1988 - "Lies" (#39 Italy)
• 1989 - "Holiday Night" (#38 Germany)
• 1989 - "Take Me Back"
• 1991 - "Ocean"
• 1992 - "Real Big Love"
• 1992 - "All I Want Is You"
• 1993 - "Take Me"
• 1994 - "The Universe Of Love"
• 1994 - "You And The Sunshine"
• 1995 - "Tomorrow Is Another Day"
• 1995 - "I Need A Lover"
• 1996 - "I Feel You"
• 1998 - "Future Brain '98"
• 2000 - "Future Brain 2000"
• 2001 - "Don't Break My Heart (Remixes 2001)"
• 2006 - "Push Push"
• 2007 - "FEDEN - Lo so"

• 1-Those Italian chart positions indicating (1) on the right side of Italy are taken from Hit Parade Italia (1985)^[11]
• 2-Those Italian chart positions indicating (2) on the right side of Italy are taken from Hit Parade Italia (1986)^[12]
• 3-Those Italian chart positions indicating (3) on the right side of Italy are taken from Hit Parade Italia (1987)^[13]
• 4-Those Italian chart positions indicating (4) on the right side of Italy are taken from Hit Parade Italia (1988)^[14]

See also[link]

• Italo disco
• Euro disco
• Eurobeat
• Milli Vanilli, a German musical group who achieved fame before also revealing that the lead singers also lip synched

References[link]

External links[link]

• http://www.eurodancehits.com/italodanceartists/denharrow.html
• Den Harrow publicly declines his generalities on Italian TV and tells the story of the name Den Harrow (Italian)
• Tom Hooker responds to Den Harrow's threats